Locations
The city of Sydney plays host to the horrors of a world in which the border between the natural and the supernatural blurs. Here, monsters prowl the night hours, corrupt public officials knowingly jeopardize the well-being of their constituents, ruthless businessmen care only about the bottom line and the poor sink ever deeper into their cycle of shame, degradation and despair. Below gives a brief description of some key sites of interest in the Sydney World of Darkness. Rookwood Cemetery Rookwood has always been a site of significance to Supernaturals around Sydney, however Kindred stay well away from the burial ground. Since its establishment in 1868, Kindred have felt a growing sense of unease the closer they get to the site. As such, no Kindred has ever made their haven on its grounds. Not even the Giovanni, who are rumoured to have command of the unquiet dead, are able to spend more than an hour on the site before losing their nerve and making retreat. Elysium – Dawes Point The site of Australia's first fortified position, constructed in 1788 to protect the cove from foreign invaders, Dawe’s Point also hosts Sydney’s Elysium. A site of supreme historical and cultural significance to the City of Sydney, the entire suburb of Dawes Point was declared Elysium by Prince Anna Dreschler in 1932 to coincide with the opening of the Sydney Harbor Bridge, thus extending an unwritten defacto state of Elysium to the Bridge itself. Now, the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct is the venue for the majority of the Court’s Elysium gatherings, however the protection of Elysium extends to all within the bounds of Dawes Point. The Rack The “Rack” is a declared communal feeding area of Sydney, where visiting Kindred or those without a herd or source of blood of their own may feed without fear of spontaneous intervention of the Court’s Officers. Kindred may petition the Prince to feed from the Rack, but must then dedicate some of their own time to guarding it from poachers. The Rack stretches from Newtown, down King Street to Broadway, then down Parramatta road to Central station. As of a few years the Prince has appointed Jason Pecker to overlook this area for her keeping the area a neutral and safe area. Castle Hill and surrounding district – Werewolves Until the late 1970’s, Castle Hill was a region of Sydney mostly un-noticed by the Kindred of Sydney. However, at the end of the Vietnam War the local economy had grown to a point where they established one of Sydney’s largest business districts outside of the CBD, Castle Towers. Several Kindred then attempted to relocate their holdings to Castle Hill, but subsequently vanished. Prince Dubios’ assets reported to the court that they had encountered extremely powerful supernatural beasts in the area, and that two of their party met final death at the hands of these creatures during their investigations. The ashes of these Kindred were later delivered in Kentucky Fried Chicken tubs to Elysium, with a Glyph scrawled across them in Kindred Blood, identified by the Tremere as a Werewolf territorial marking. Subsequently Prince Dubios annexed Castle Hill and the surrounding suburbs from his Domain. The Shire The Southern region of Sydney (Sutherland and surrounds), known as “The Shire” or “God’s Country” to its residents, is home to the City’s greatest concentration of “White Australians”. Here, the Police crackdown on Ethnic Gang violence, while turning a blind eye to the safe haven they’ve allowed for the Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs and their associated activities. Here, “cashed up Bogans” thrive, while anybody not fitting with the local Constabulary’s opinion on what is proper, is quickly bum-rushed out of the area. The Northern Beaches The Northern region of Sydney (Manly and surrounds), known as “North Sydney” by residents of the rest of the city, has a reputation for being where “Rich Snobs” live, and they aren’t far off the mark. People of all cultures and racial backgrounds call the Northern Beaches their home, providing a thriving community for the Upper Middle Class of Sydney. To the Camarilla of Sydney, however, the Northern Beaches are a little more contentious. Between the Northern Beaches and the CBD, lies the Business District of North Sydney, unofficial territory of the Giovanni. While the Giovanni make no claim on the Northern beaches, the Kindred who live there will almost certainly encounter The Family, and as a result tend to shy away from the region as a general rule. More recently, there are rumours of the Sabbat having established themselves in the area. North Sydney The Suburb of North Sydney and Surrounding suburbs are well known to be the territory of the Independent Clan of the Giovanni. They first made their roots in the city during the Gold Rush, quickly establishing themselves in the local economy of the area. The Giovanni have never been granted any official “Domain” by any Prince in Sydney, however being Independent, the Camarilla have no authority to dictate any terms to them. Primarily the Giovanni reside peacefully with their Kindred neighbours, so long as their business interests don’t interfere with those of The Family. The leader of the Necromancers, is Jin Wen Giovanni, who runs a private Casino in Crows Nest. She has represented the Clan since their establishment here. Bankstown Bankstown City Council has long been rumoured to be one of the most corrupt Councils in the greater Sydney area… and those rumours are well founded. Bankstown is known to house a small cabal of Followers of Set, who have put down roots in the prevalent Middle-Eastern communities in the area. There are a significant percentage of Sydney’s Industrial areas within its bounds, specializing for the most part in the Transportation, Automotive and Fabrication industries. It is a region of the City where the Police feel powerless, and Ethnic based gangs all but rule the streets. Liverpool Liverpool in Sydney’s South West is one of the oldest suburbs of the City, established in 1810, as a major hub for the agricultural and transportation industries. As the City ‘s expansion engulfed the area, however, the City of Liverpool is now best known for its vast Housing Commission Estates, several of which have recently been decommissioned, though the buildings still stand, a veritable Ghost Town. Camperdown Memorial Rest Park & Saint Stephen’s Located in the City’s Inner-Western suburb of Newtown, the cemetery was founded in 1848, and is the resting place of several people who were important to the early history of Colonial Australia. Now, the graveyard is a site of Cultural and Artistic significance to the local residents, who despite being for the most part “atheists”, respect the place for its historic value. The Church that stands on the site, however, is a completely different story. The minarets and the false towers? Those are meant to shine in the sun, to show mere mortals God’s reflected glory. But they’re above the streetlights and they’re angled just wrong, so instead they’re black spikes stabbing at Heaven. Even the bas-relief cherubs take on a sinister cast, their brows knitting and their lips twisting in the shadows from passing headlights. God’s glory? No, not even God’s judgement. St Stephen’s radiates God’s twisted sense of humour. That’s not to say it’s not uplifting to the soul, or at least numbing to the hole yours left when it got ripped out. There’s a certain comfort in saying, “God, you sly bastard… right back at you,” and then smirking at each other like men’s men and cracking up. Old Testament style. Saint Stephen’s is run by Pastor Bernie Osbourne. CBD Underground Rail Network – aka “The Exchange” Sydney sits on top of a second, parallel city: a network of underground railway tunnels, some used, others abandoned. There is a whole other town beneath Sydney's skin. It's an earthbound, stone and concrete-lined world of subterranean tunnels. From a pitch-black underground lake, to disused stations, to bomb shelters and even RAAF operations bunkers, all abandoned and left in perpetual darkness. Now, the underground network is a sanctuary for the innumerable Denizens of the World of Darkness. Known as “The Exchange” to its residents, Vampires are not the only preternatural creatures lurking within the shadows of the tunnels, stalking the Homeless and Dispossessed who have made the undercity network their home. The Exchange is loosely governed by a citizen known only as “The Fat Controller”, who enforces his own twisted Law by way of designated “Rail Guards”. The exact nature of the Fat Controller is unknown, as not many people can confess to having met the self-styled Dictator of the Undercity. Cockatoo Island Between 1839 and 1869, Cockatoo Island operated as a convict penal establishment, primarily as a place of secondary punishment for convicts who had re-offended in the colonies. It went on to be the site of one of Australia's biggest shipyards, operating between 1857 and 1991. The first of its two dry docks were built by convicts. In 2001, SkyCorp Studios beat the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust in a bid to purchase the land from the New South Wales Government, and have since converted the site into their Asian-Pacific Regional Head Office. Having been declared a Heritage Site, SkyCorp have built their studios in and around the existing infrastructure, leaving the majority of the fixtures in their original state, using the site regularly to film movies and television series. Cockatoo Island is still open for tours and public use… for a fee. Kings Cross Colloquially known as The Cross, the area is known as Sydney's red-light district, and is reputed to be home to the seediest elements that Sydney has to offer. Once known for its music halls and grand theatres, it was rapidly transformed after World War II by the influx of troops returning and visiting from the nearby Garden Island naval base. Today, it is a mixed locality offering both services (railway, gyms, supermarket, bakeries) to nearby residents and entertainment venues including bars, restaurants, nightclubs, brothels and strip clubs to visitors. The Cross is occupied by Sydney’s Anarch vampire community. These young fringe dwelling vampires live as a “free thinking commune”, where all Kindred are considered Equal. A concept Anathema to the long standing and proven traditions of the Camarilla. Their Elected “Prefect” is Falani, who represents them to the Camarilla if necessary. (ST Note: No. You cannot play an Anarch) The Eastern Suburbs - Bondi The Eastern suburbs of Sydney are without a doubt the richest areas the city has to offer. Here, race for the most part means nothing and the only colour that matters are the ones that appear on bank notes. How may trust funds you can skim, and whether your Daddy is a Somebody play a big part too. A mix of old and new money, most residents of the East consider anywhere passed the Sydney CBD to be “The West” and have rarely travelled outside of their “bubble”. Not content to lord their gratuitous wealth over the rest of the city, the residents of the East are just as likely to direct their ire and ridicule to their own. The divide between the “Old” and “New” money families runs through the East as clear as an Australian summer sky, with the “plebes” (most of the upper-middle class residents of the suburbs) only part of the set dressing for the ongoing trashy day-time television lifestyles the self-aggrandising Princes and Princesses of Bondi “live”. Home to several sites of supreme historical significance, it is no wonder that many of the City’s supernatural inhabitants have settled within its borders. Old Quarantine Station The complex operated as a quarantine station from 1832 to 1984, a significant distance from the heavily populated areas of Sydney’s suburbs, until its purchase and renovation into a Hotel, conference centre and restaurant complex by SkyCorp, known as “The Station”. Again, SkyCorp respected the heritage status of the site, and had the renovations fashioned into something strait out of an F. Scott Fitzgerald novel. Many of the station's original buildings were renovated and turned into a museum, which preserve the history of the site, and the memories of those who lost their lives there. Unsurprisingly, The Station is known to the tourism industry as a primary site in Sydney for “Ghost Tours”, which SkyCorp have done nothing to dissuade, and in fact encourage as part of the Museum, offering accommodation packages and themed events to would be Ghost Hunters. Silverwater Gaol – aka The Tomb What the general public of Sydney know about Sydney’s most secure gaol is that in 1997, the maximum security Metropolitan Reception and Remand Centre (MRRC) was opened in the Western Sydney suburb of Silverwater. Built on the site of a former Royal Australian Naval Base and Armament Depot, the MRRC can house up to nine hundred inmates at full capacity. What they don’t know, is that the Gaol’s location was selected by the machinations of the Nosferatu Vampire, Herbert Cobb. In additional to highly secure facility that operates its day to day civil duties above ground, beneath it there are secret cells converted from powder magazines and explosive munitions storage lockers that even the most potent of Elders would struggle to escape. Known to Kindred as “The Tomb”, it has existed in Sydney since 1882. It is rumoured that Prince Morello orchestrated the construction of a Naval Powder Magazine at the site, where he then had the Nosferatu establish The Tomb, with the intent of igniting the magazine should the occupants ever escape custody and take the site hostage. Now, managed and improved by Cobb, all manner of creatures are locked away at the behest of his clients.